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With the Galaxias fish experiment having been successful in October 2009 it was decided to see if Kurper are able to survive in Die Oog water. Three Kurper have survived in Die Oog water for more than 30 days. This means that we have two potential indigenous fish species to stock Die Oog.

January 2010 - The weed growing at Die Oog is an ongoing problem. Discussions are underway with the Die Oog Partnership on how best to manage the weeds into the future. One of the options to remove the weeds is to introduce Grass Carp, a species of Carp that removes the grass over time, does not procreate and are rather costly to purchase. An interesting debate is raging on whether they are appropriate to Die Oog. An alernative to the Grass Carp is the option of clearing the weeds manually.

The birds that were roosting on the island have suddenly disappeared with one of the reasons being the bamboo perches splintering. Weaver numbers on the island are on the increase, nesting in the lower shrubs.

What is new July - December 2009

2009 AGM

The Friends of Die Oog annual AGM was held at the Bergvliet Sea Scouts Hall on Thursday 15 Oct 2009. The meeting was well attended and Russell Stevens from the Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town gave a talk on "The Ark" project which is affecting toads and frogs globally. The "Toads roaring" section on this website was also demonstrated for those who have not had the pleasure of hearing this unique sound.

Leopard toad breeding season August 2009 - It was again the breeding season for Leopard Toads in the Western Cape and they moved through our suburbs in what appeared to be lesser numbers. The toadlets should leave Die Oog around December. Please be aware of them if you can and if you would like further information regarding the protection of the Leopard Toads, please contact Mark Day on 082 516 3602 or leopardtoad@gmail.com.

Introducing fish to the dam project - June 2009 - A project is underway to determine if it is feasible to introduce indigenous fish to the dam at Die Oog. Previously 300 indigenous Galaxias were introduced, and the first task of the project was to determine if any of the Galaxias are still in the dam.

Sean Marr from the University of Cape Town's Freshwater Research unit in the department of zoology, laying a catch net to determine if fish are resident in the dam. Two nets were left in place overnight. After 24 hours, the harvest was one irate crab, a common platanna frog (Xenopus leavis) and no Galaxias.

The project moved to stage two to harvest Galaxias from the Keyser river below Die Oog. None were caught in this phase and the project will now move further afield for harvesting. Once we have samples, and in order to determine if they can survive in the Die Oog dam, they will be monitored in a tank with water from the Die Oog dam.

October 2009  The Galaxias survived 30 days in a tank with the water being refreshed from Die OOG weekly. The next step will be planned with Sean Marr once he is again available. It is also planned to test if indigenous Cape Kurper can survive in a tank with Die OOG water.

September 2009 - 12 Galaxias have been translocated from a wetland at Kenilworth Cape Town and placed in a tank with Die Oog water which is refreshed once a week. The test is to see if they can live in the water which has a large nutrient content from the bird life roosting on the Die Oog island. The photo here shows the size of two Galaxias in the tank. They are about 1 cm in length and can grow up to about 6 cm. They are well camoflagued as you can see.

Repairing the dam wall - The dam wall on the south side is eroding and will be reinforced with pre cast bollards. The bollards are around 25cm in diameter, 1,5 m long and are designed to lock together for stability.

What happened January - June 2009

Die Oog Arbor Day - 30 April 2009 17:30 at Die Oog - A ceremony marking the planting of shrubs in recognition of the generous Luger family donation was held. Guest speaker Clifford Dorse gave a short talk followed by the shrub planting, drinks and snacks.

Mid March 2009- A set of dabchicks with their prominent nest provided much delight to visitors to Die Oog.

December 2008 - The Luger family who lived on a property adjacent to Die Oog left SA and settled in Australia. All the family were passionate about Die Oog and gave a tremendous amount of time and effort in getting Die Oog to what it is today. We thank you all and wish you all the best Down Under.

26 November 2008 - This terrapin was spotted climbing from the water onto the island. There were a large number of tadpoles in the south west corner of the dam.

19 November 2008 - The Leopard toadlets started moving from the water into the gardens of the houses surrounding Die OOG. Please view the Leopard Toads page for further detail. A white feathered guineafowl arrived and it's origin was being investigated by a bird expert.

What happened July - September 2008

Leopard Toad Breeding Western Leopard toads migrated to Die Oog in the 3rd week in August and then again later in mid October. Special "tunnels" were installed in the fencing around Die Oog to allow easier access for the toads. At the end of October a small new batch of tadpoles has appeared. The young toads will be leaving Die Oog at the end of the year.

Birds Cape Weavers are in bright breeding plumage and are busy building nests in the trees around the edges of Die Oog. Reed cormorants have returned to the island and are noisily raising their chicks at present. The yellow bill, coot and Egyptian geese chicks have grown substantially.

Water The water level is still high after the substantial winter rains.

As an additional fund-raiser, the Friends have produced a series of blank letter cards featuring beautiful colour photographs of the flora, fauna and views of Die Oog. These are being sold in packs of 8, with envelopes, for R 50 and can be ordered by phoning Pauline or Malcolm Pearce 021 715 8666.